Hello Everybody,
Those who are seriously considering how to lose weight can be swamped by conflicting advice. But before you begin it is helpful to know what you should not do. So here are five pitfalls
Fad diets. Do not think a fad diet will make you slim this time next year. They are short term and you will put on weight again if you stick with your old eating habits. They can also be dangerous. There are plenty of Fad Diets out there and many are well known. The Palaeolithic diet, based on a lifestyle not famous for the longevity of its participants, the Hallelujah diet, with Biblical overtones, although a reported lifespan of 969 years may require adjustment of a decimal point, the Hollywood diet, the Tiger diet, the Atkins diet. All of these have been shown to have potential dangers (Professor Hawkey - Gastro 2009 Conference, London). Change your lifestyle, bin the Fad Diets they are not worth the risk.
Pills. There is gold in them there pills. For some, being able to lose weight by just taking a pill must be hard to resist. Like Fad Diets there are plenty of pills around and plenty of suppliers only too happy to take your money. But pills can be really dangerous. Do not be taken in by labels of ‘natural’ or ‘organic,’ some contain harmful substances. Fake pills, containing who knows what, are on the market and the FDA have banned a number of products, but legislation is still weak. Prescription appetite suppressants for the obese do have their place. But that is for your doctor to decide. Never take over-the-counter pills.
Detoxification. There is no scientific evidence that products promoted as helping the body detoxify work. What is detoxification anyway? The dictionary defines detoxify as ‘to remove harmful or toxic substances from something’. In the marketplace it can be anything from a face wash to a dietary supplement. Don’t bother with any of them.
Colon Cleansing. With any luck the colon cleanses itself every day. If you eat a healthy diet containing fresh fruit, vegetables, grains, lean meat and fish as well as drinking plenty of water and exercising regularly your colon should be just fine. If not talk to your doctor. Do not waste money on products which clean your colon.
Testimonials. We have all seen testimonials. Most products have a few. Charity from Alabama, Hannah from London, Garth from Sydney, are all delighted with their latest diet. There are pictures - some before and after - all of attractive looking people. How do we find out if these testimonials are real? We don’t. There should be a link, so that a reader can contact the writer of the testimonial to confirm he or she exists. But if there is a link we have no guarantee that the person does not sell the product as an affiliate, or that the link does not lead to a site owned by the seller. As for the before and after pictures. Even if these are not a testimonial for Photoshop we have no means of knowing how long it took to achieve the remarkable success shown. Always distrust testimonials.
The bottom line is be realistic, we must treat sellers of weight loss products, along with those of beauty products and used cars with deep suspicion. Just think about it. Anyone who wants to lose 40 pounds in 3 weeks because of a wedding (check the forums, some do) is expecting the weight of a 4 year old boy to vanish into thin air from their body in under a month. Fast weight loss is possible, but not that fast with any safety at all. But if you have forgotten you are getting married next week or need to lose weight fast for some other reason it can be done. Just be aware that there are risks and do not expect it to last without a lifestyle change. There is much argument about the best way to lose weight, not everybody would agree with my thoughts on the matter. So look around, do your research, ignore the testimonials and good luck.
See you soon,
Peter Stockwell
1 August 2010
Photo. Stoke (Flickr)
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